Andrew Dismore

London Assembly Member for Barnet and Camden  Andrew Dismore AM has condemned the Government’s continued refusal to scrap their suspension of free travel for thousands of young Londoners. Mr Dismore said that despite some recent climbdowns on the proposals by the Department for Transport (DfT), the poorest families are still set to be “hit the hardest” by the current version of the policy.

In May, after eight weeks of discussions, the Government provided a £1.6 billion emergency funding deal for Transport for London (TfL) after their revenue dropped by 90% due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

According to the Mayor of London, the requirement to suspend temporarily the Oyster Zip Card concession was imposed by the Government in the final days of the negotiations.

At a Plenary meeting today, the London Assembly passed a motion calling upon the Mayor to continue to lobby the Government to reverse this policy. The motion was supported by Labour Assembly Members, and also achieved the support of Green and Lib Dem AMs. However, six of the seven Conservative AMs present failed to give their support.

In recent months, TfL have warned the DfT about the many administrative hurdles in the way of implementing the suspension.

In July, the Government confirmed it would no longer temporarily cancel free transport for children aged ten and under, and that it would push back the remainder of its proposals which would still apply to secondary school and sixth form pupils, until 1^st November.

A letter to TfL from the Minister for Roads, Buses and Places, Baroness Vere, has specified which young Londoners between 11 and 18 years old will be exempted from the suspension, but the list does not include those eligible for free school meals.

The Mayor previously wrote to the Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps, in June, urging him not to proceed with the blocking of the Zip Card, but this request was met with refusal.

Local London Assembly Member, Andrew Dismore AM, said:

“It has been out in the open for a while that the Government demanded this condition in the final days of the negotiations, forcing TfL to accept the deal or risk going bust.

“Thousands of young Londoners from the poorest families, and particularly those from BAME communities, will be hit the hardest by the suspension of the Zip Card.

“It remains to be seen how Ministers plan successfully to implement this policy, even in its now delayed and watered-down format.

“The chorus of calls from young students, parents and charities for the Government to cut its losses and perform a full U-turn on this cannot be ignored any longer”.

ENDS

Notes

• Today’s London Assembly Plenary Meeting can be watched back here;

• The full terms of the Government’s emergency funding deal with Transport for London (TfL) can be found published in the papers for TfL’s upcoming board meeting, due to take place on 2^nd June, from page 61 onwards;

• In the lead up to the deal, the Covid-19 outbreak and lockdown measures had a significant impact on TfL’s finances, with fares income falling 90%, according to the Mayor of London;

• According to a letter to Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps, from the Mayor of London, the requirement to temporarily suspend the Oyster Zip Card concession was imposed by the Government in the final days of the negotiations. The same letter, states that in recent months, TfL have warned the DfT about the many administrative hurdles in the way of implementing the suspension;

• In July, the Minister for Roads, Buses and Places, Baroness Vere, wrote to TfL to reveal that the plans to suspend free travel for under 18s would be pushed back until the October half-term and would no longer apply to children aged ten and under. The same letter, which can be found attached, also specifies which young Londoners between 11 and 18 years old will be exempted from the suspension, but the list does not include those eligible for free school meals;

• The Mayor previously wrote to the Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps, in June, urging him not to proceed with the blocking of the Zip Card, but this request was met with refusal;

• Andrew Dismore AM is the London Assembly Member for Barnet and Camden.